What game theory tells us about nuclear war with North Korea

What game theory tells us about nuclear war with North Korea

“Are we headed for a nuclear war?”

It’s the question hanging over, well, basically everyone these days, as North Korea flaunts new developments in its nuclear weapons program, threatening the United States, and President Trump promises “fire and fury” in response. Those tensions seem to be easing as of Wednesday, when Trump wrote on Twitter that “Kim Jong Un of North Korea made a very wise and well reasoned decision,” possibly referencing a seeming pause in Pyongyang’s anti-U.S. threats.

But the episode remains frightening, and it’s all the more so because making predictions about nuclear war is deeply difficult.